Undemocratic, A Word Not To Be Taken Lightly

As an active DSA member I hear this word all the time, almost as much as I hear the words “organizing” and “socialism.” I think active leftists in all organizations can relate to this, but I think the attack of something being “undemocratic”is overused.

Now I am not suggestingin any waywe not call out undemocratic behavior, what I am saying is we need to acknowledge that being called “undemocratic” is the heaviest attack you can lay against someone in an organization thatis supposedto bedemocratic. That is not something to take lightly.

Behavior that is genuinely undemocratic is something that an elected official does nothave the authorityto do or is an action that goes out of its way to side step democraticprocedures. That does not stop people from throwing the term around when a comrade does something that they simply do not agree with.

Most of the time whatis called‘undemocratic behavior’ is actually just people disagreeing with how somethingwas done, or it is people letting personal differences effect their outlook on what is good for their organization. If we attack every single thing or person we disagree with as ‘undemocratic’ then the word will lose all meaning. It will be a boy who called wolf situation, the moment we actually have to face the consequences of someone doing something undemocratic we will be illpreparedto handle it.

An action is only undemocratic if it goes out of its way to defy democratic principles, unless it is intentionally sidestepping the consent or consensus of the voting body, the odds are it was not “undemocratic.”

I am not sayinghold your tonguewhen you see genuinely undemocratic behavior, all I am asking is that people remember that in organizations that pride themselves on democracy, it is not a termto betaken lightly.